Here’s what the analysts FactSet surveyed are looking for: Adjusted earnings of 44 cents a share on $4.3 billion in revenue.

And here are a few items Wall Street is paying extra-close attention to. Any surprises here could launch the stock one way or the other.

According to analysts at Cantor Fitzgerald U.S. Equities Research, Whole Foods faces a “triple threat” in the near term: declining comparable-store sales, lower productivity at new stores, and higher pre-opening costs at newer stores based on increased square footage. (The company is expected to report 10 new stores were opened this past quarter, which would bring the total to 371.)

Chris Jacobsen, a derivatives strategist at Susquehanna Financial Group, writes it is “imperative” that Whole Foods’ comparable-store sales stabilize at 5% to 6%. (They were at 6.9% in the previous quarter.)

Jacobsen also says Whole Foods needs to show further improvement in its margins, though he also argues investors should be willing to accept margins growing at a slower pace given cautious consumer sentiment and the impact of tough winter weather.

In addition to comp-sales and margins, analysts at J.P. Morgan said they would be looking for the company to maintain — not cut — core guidance.

Whole Foods has a history of offering conservative earnings outlooks. It trimmed its full-year earnings guidance in November to $1.65 to $1.69 a share from $1.69 to $1.72, perhaps another example of tamping down expectations to ensure targets are met, and preferably exceeded.

But that doesn’t always translate into a higher share price. While beating fiscal fourth-quarter EPS estimates on Nov. 6, its lowered its full-year outlook, which knocked its share prices down as much as 8%. That’s exactly the kind of reaction that gives Whole Foods a reputation for keeping things lively on earnings day.

A couple of hours before the close, Whole Foods shares were down 0.5% at $55.64, up nearly 16% from where they were trading 12 months ago.

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